Method and system for leasing of network services and applications based on a usage pattern

ABSTRACT

Aspects of a method and system for predictive leasing of network services and applications based on a usage pattern may comprise a management entity that coordinates operation of one or more endpoint devices. A user profile associated with the one or more endpoint devices may be received by the management entity, wherein the management entity may utilize the user profile associated with the one or more endpoint devices and a usage pattern associated with the one or more endpoint devices to determine leasing information for the one or more endpoint devices. The management entity may be operable to communicate the determined leasing information to the one or more endpoint devices. The leasing information may comprise leasing services and/or applications to the one or more endpoint devices.

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No.12/775,083, filed May 6, 2010, pending, which claims priority to andclaims benefit of U.S. Provisional Application Ser. No. 61/228,358,filed Jul. 24, 2009, expired. These related applications are herebyincorporated in their entirety herein by this reference.

TECHNICAL FIELD

Certain embodiments of the invention relate to communications. Morespecifically, certain embodiments of the invention relate to a methodand system for predictive leasing of network services and applicationsbased on a usage pattern.

BACKGROUND

Electronic communication networks are becoming an increasingly popularmeans of exchanging data of various types, sizes for a variety ofapplications and business and consumers alike want network access onmore and more devices. Moreover, consumers and business continually wantfaster network access and/or greater bandwidth on all of theircommunication devices. Consequently, as more and more devices are beingequipped to access communication networks, network administrators andservice providers are presented with the challenge of effectivelyserving an increasing number of devices having and increasingly diverseset of capabilities utilizing an increasing diverse collection ofprotocols, software, and/or other networking and computing resources.

Further limitations and disadvantages of conventional and traditionalapproaches will become apparent to one of skill in the art, throughcomparison of such systems with some aspects of the present invention asset forth in the remainder of the present application with reference tothe drawings.

BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

A system and/or method is provided for predictive leasing of networkservices and applications based on a usage pattern, substantially asshown in and/or described in connection with at least one of thefigures, as set forth more completely in the claims.

These and other advantages, aspects and novel features of the presentinvention, as well as details of an illustrated embodiment thereof, willbe more fully understood from the following description and drawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The innovation may be better understood with reference to the followingdrawings and description. In the figures, like reference numeralsdesignate corresponding parts throughout the different views.

FIG. 1A is a diagram illustrating a system for leasing of networkservices and applications based on a usage pattern, in accordance withan embodiment of the invention.

FIG. 1B is a diagram illustrating a system for leasing of networkservices and applications comprising a service provider and a contentprovider, in accordance with an embodiment of the invention.

FIG. 2A is a block diagram of an exemplary endpoint device, inaccordance with an embodiment of the invention.

FIG. 2B is a block diagram of an exemplary management entity, inaccordance with an embodiment of the invention.

FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating exemplary user profiles stored in aregistry in a management entity, in accordance with an embodiment of theinvention.

FIG. 4 is a flow chart illustrating exemplary steps for leasing ofnetwork services and applications based on a usage pattern, inaccordance with an embodiment of the invention.

FIG. 5 is a flow chart illustrating exemplary steps for leasing ofnetwork services and applications based on an updated usage pattern, inaccordance with an embodiment of the invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Certain embodiments of the invention may be found in a method and systemfor leasing of network services and applications based on a usagepattern. In various embodiments of the invention, a communication systemmay comprise a management entity that coordinates operation of one ormore endpoint devices. A user profile associated with the one or moreendpoint devices may be received by the management entity, wherein themanagement entity may utilize the received user profile and a usagepattern associated with the one or more endpoint devices to determineleasing information for the one or more endpoint devices. The leasinginformation may comprise information regarding leasing one or moreapplications and/or services to the one or more endpoint devices.

FIG. 1A is a diagram illustrating a system for leasing of networkservices and applications based on a usage pattern, in accordance withan embodiment of the invention. Referring to FIG. 1A, there is shown acommunication system 100 comprising a sub-network 101, and a managemententity 102. The exemplary sub-network 101 may comprise a plurality ofendpoint devices. Exemplary endpoint devices may comprise media players,HD television systems, video and/or still cameras, game consoles,set-top boxes (STBs), cell phones, laptops, televisions sets, displaydevices and/or location determination enabled devices. For example, thesub-network 101 may comprise a plurality of STBs 110 a and 110 b, whichare collectively referred to herein as STBs 110, a plurality of cellphones 112 a and 112 b, which are collectively referred to herein ascell phones 112, and a plurality of laptops 114 a and 114 b, which arecollectively referred to herein as laptops 114. The STB 110 a may beinstalled in one or more commercial properties 104, the STB 110 b andlaptop 114 b may be installed in one or more residential properties 106,the laptop 114 a and the cell phone 112 b may be located in one or moremulti-tenant properties 108, and/or the cell phone 112 a may be locatedwithin the sub-network 101. Notwithstanding, the invention may not be solimited and the plurality of endpoint devices may be located and/orinstalled in any other location, for example, an office withoutdeparting from the scope of the invention.

The commercial properties 104 may comprise, for example, stores,restaurants, offices, and municipal buildings. The residentialproperties 106 may comprise, for example, single-family homes, homeoffices, and/or town-houses. Multi-tenant properties 108 may compriseresidential and/or commercial tenants such as apartments, condos,hotels, and/or high rises.

The management entity 102 may comprise suitable logic, circuitry,interfaces and/or code for managing user profiles of one more endpointdevices, for example, the STB 110 b, the cell phone 112 b, and/or thelaptop 114 b. The cell phones 112 and the laptops 114 may each comprisesuitable logic, circuitry, interfaces and/or code that may be operableto communicate wirelessly utilizing one or more wireless standards suchas IS-95, CDMA, EVDO, GSM, TDMA, GPRS, EDGE, UMTS/WCDMA, TD-SCDMA, HSPA(HSUPA and/or HSDPA), WIMAX and/or LTE. The cell phones 112 and thelaptops 114 may be operable to communicate based on Bluetooth, Zigbeeand/or other suitable wireless technologies. The management entity 102may be operable to provide access to the Internet and/or one or moreprivate networks via one or more of optical, wired, and/or wirelessconnections. In various embodiments of the invention, the optical,wired, and/or wireless connections may comprise a broadband connectionsuch as a digital subscriber line (DSL), Ethernet, passive opticalnetwork (PON), a T1/E1 line, a cable television infrastructure, asatellite television infrastructure, and/or a satellite broadbandInternet connection.

The STBs 110 may comprise suitable logic, circuitry, interfaces and/orcode that may be operable to connect to a display device, for example, atelevision set and an external source of signal from the managemententity 102. The STBs 110 may be operable to convert the received signalfrom the management entity 102 to content, which may be displayed on adisplay device, for example, a television set. The STBs 110 may beoperable to provide Internet connectivity, multimedia downloads and/orIP telephony sessions.

The cell phones 112 and/or laptops 114 may each comprise suitable logic,circuitry, interfaces, and/or code that may be operable to communicateutilizing one or more cellular standards. The cell phones 112 and/orlaptops 114 may be operable to receive, process, and present multimediacontent and may additionally be enabled run a network browser or otherapplications for providing Internet services to a user of the cellphones 112 and/or laptops 114.

In operation, the management entity 102 may be operable to coordinateoperation of one or more endpoint devices, for example, the STBs 110,the cell phones 112, and/or the laptops 114. One or more user profilescorresponding to one or more endpoint devices, for example, the STBs110, the cell phones 112, and/or the laptops 114 may be received by themanagement entity 102. The management entity 102 may be operable toutilize the one or more user profiles associated with the one or moreendpoint devices, for example, the STBs 110, the cell phones 112, and/orthe laptops 114 and the usage pattern associated with the one or moreendpoint devices, for example, the STBs 110, the cell phones 112, and/orthe laptops 114 to determine leasing information for the one or moreendpoint devices, for example, the STBs 110, the cell phones 112, and/orthe laptops 114. The management entity 102 may be operable tocommunicate the determined leasing information to the one or moreendpoint devices, for example, the STBs 110, the cell phones 112, and/orthe laptops 114.

The one or more endpoint devices, for example, the STBs 110, the cellphones 112, and/or the laptops 114 may be operable to configurethemselves based on receiving from the management entity 102, thedetermined leasing information for each of the one or more endpointdevices, for example, the STBs 110, the cell phones 112, and/or thelaptops 114. The determined leasing information may comprise a timeperiod for downloading one or more of the applications previously leasedby the one or more endpoint devices, for example, the STBs 110, the cellphones 112, and/or the laptops 114. The determined leasing informationmay also comprise a time period for leasing one or more of the servicespreviously leased by the one or more endpoint devices, for example, theSTBs 110, the cell phones 112, and/or the laptops 114. For example, whenan endpoint device, for example, cell phone 112 a is at a particularGNSS location, the management entity 102 may be operable to download theapplications and/or services leased from the management entity 102 tothe cell phone 112 a at a pre-determined time period for leasing theapplications and/or based on the received user profile from the cellphone 112 a.

FIG. 1B is a diagram illustrating a system for leasing of networkservices and applications based on a usage pattern comprising a serviceprovider and a content provider, in accordance with an embodiment of theinvention. Referring to FIG. 1B, there is shown a communication system150. The communication system 150 may comprise a content provider 152, aservice provider 154, wired 158 a and/or wireless connections 158 b, anda plurality of endpoint devices, for example, a laptop 160 a, a cellphone 160 b, and a set-top box (STB) 160 c. The content provider 152 maycomprise a management entity 156 a and the service provider 154 maycomprise a management entity 156 b. The management entities 156 a and156 b, the laptop 160 a, the cell phone 160 b, and the STB 160 c may besubstantially similar to the corresponding blocks as described withrespect to FIG. 1A. Notwithstanding, the invention may not be solimited, and there may be a plurality of service providers and/orcontent providers without limiting the scope of the invention.

The content provider 152 may comprise suitable logic, circuitry,interfaces and/or code that may be operable to generate and/or provide aplurality of types of content, for example, audio data, video dataand/or text data. The content provider 152 may be operable tocommunicate the received data to one or more endpoint devices, forexample, the STB 160 c, the laptop 160 a and/or the cell phone 160 beither directly or indirectly via the service provider 154, for example.

The service provider 154 may comprise suitable logic, circuitry,interfaces and/or code that may be operable to receive data from thecontent provider 152. The service provider 154 may be operable tocommunicate the received data to one or more endpoint devices, forexample, the STB 160 c, the laptop 160 a and/or the cell phone 160 b.The service provider 154 may be operable to provide access to theInternet and/or one or more private networks via one or more of optical,wired 158 a, and/or wireless connections 158 b. In various embodimentsof the invention, the optical, wired 158 a, and/or wireless connections158 b may comprise a broadband connection such as a digital subscriberline (DSL), Ethernet, passive optical network (PON), a T1/E1 line, acable television infrastructure, a satellite television infrastructure,and/or a satellite broadband Internet connection.

In operation, the management entity 156 a and/or 156 b may be operableto coordinate operation of one or more endpoint devices, for example,the STB 160 c, the cell phone 160 b, and/or the laptop 160 a. Themanagement entity 156 a and/or 156 b may be operable to receive one ormore user profiles corresponding to one or more endpoint devices, forexample, the STB 160 c, the cell phone 160 b, and/or the laptop 160 a.The management entity 156 a and/or 156 b may be operable to utilize theone or more received user profiles and the usage pattern associated withthe one or more endpoint devices, for example, the STB 160 c, the cellphone 160 b, and/or the laptop 160 a to determine leasing informationfor the one or more endpoint devices, for example, the STB 160 c, thecell phone 160 b, and/or the laptop 160 a. The leasing information maycomprise information regarding leasing one or more applications and/orservices to the one or more endpoint devices, for example, the STB 160c, the cell phone 160 b, and/or the laptop 160 a. The one or moreendpoint devices, for example, the STB 160 c, the cell phone 160 b,and/or the laptop 160 a may be operable to configure themselves based onreceiving, from the management entity 156 a and/or 156 b, the determinedleasing information for each of the one or more endpoint devices.

The management entity 156 a and/or 156 b may be operable to receive oneor more updated user profiles and/or updated usage patterns from the oneor more endpoint devices, for example, the STB 160 c, the cell phone 160b, and/or the laptop 160 a. The management entity 156 a and/or 156 b maybe operable to utilize the one or more updated user profiles and/or theupdated usage patterns associated with the one or more endpoint devices,for example, the STB 160 c, the cell phone 160 b, and/or the laptop 160a to determine new leasing information for the one or more endpointdevices, for example, the STB 160 c, the cell phone 160 b, and/or thelaptop 160 a. The management entity 156 a and/or 156 b may be operableto communicate the determined new leasing information to the one or moreendpoint devices, for example, the STB 160 c, the cell phone 160 b,and/or the laptop 160 a. The one or more endpoint devices, for example,the STB 160 c, the cell phone 160 b, and/or the laptop 160 a may beoperable to configure themselves based on the received new leasinginformation from the management entity 156 a and/or 156 b. The one ormore user profiles associated with the particular content type maycomprise one or more of applications leased, services leased, a serviceclass, device capabilities, a GNSS location, and/or a power mode of theone or more endpoint devices, for example, the STB 160 c, the cell phone160 b, and/or the laptop 160 a.

FIG. 2A is a block diagram of an exemplary endpoint device, inaccordance with an embodiment of the invention. Referring to FIG. 2A,there is shown a endpoint device 200. The endpoint device 200 maycomprise a wireless Tx/Rx 202, a wired Tx/Rx 204, a GNSS receiver 206, aprocessor 208, a memory 210, and a DSP 212. Notwithstanding, theinvention may not be so limited, and the endpoint device 200 may berealized in hardware, software, or a combination of hardware andsoftware without limiting the scope of the invention.

The wireless broadband Tx/Rx 202 may comprise suitable logic, circuitry,interfaces and/or code that may be operable to transmit and/or receivedata, in adherence with one or more broadband communication standards,to and/or from the service provider 154 and/or the content provider 152via the wireless connection 158 b. The wireless broadband Tx/Rx 202 maybe operable to perform amplification, down-conversion, filtering,demodulation, and analog to digital conversion of received signals. Inaddition, the wireless broadband Tx/Rx 202 may be operable to performamplification, up-conversion, filtering, modulation, and digital toanalog conversion of transmitted signals.

The wired Tx/Rx 204 may comprise suitable logic, circuitry, interfacesand/or code that may be operable to transmit and/or receive data toand/or from the service provider 154 and/or the content provider 152 viathe wired connection 158 a. For example, the wired Tx/Rx 204 maytransmit and/or receive data via a T1/E1 line, Ethernet, PON, DSL, cabletelevision infrastructure, satellite broadband internet connectionand/or satellite television infrastructure for example. In variousembodiments of the invention, the wired Tx/Rx 204 may be operable toperform exemplary operations and/or functions comprising amplification,down-conversion, filtering, demodulation, and analog to digitalconversion of received signals. In addition, the wired Tx/Rx 204 may beoperable to perform exemplary operations and/or functions comprisingamplification, up-conversion, filtering, modulation, and digital toanalog conversion of transmitted signals.

The GNSS receiver 206 may comprise suitable logic, circuitry, interfacesand/or code that may be operable to receive signals from one or moreGNSS satellites, for example, GLONASS, GALILEO and/or GPS satellites.The received signals may comprise timing, ephemeris, long term orbitinformation, and/or almanac information that enable the GNSS receiver206 to determine its location and/or time.

The processor 208 may comprise suitable logic, circuitry, interfacesand/or code that may be operable to process data and/or controloperations of the endpoint device 200. In this regard, the processor 208may be operable to provide control signals to the various other blockswithin the endpoint device 200. The processor 208 may also control datatransfers between various portions of the endpoint device 200.Additionally, the processor 208 may enable execution of applicationsprograms and/or code. In various embodiments of the invention, theapplications, programs, and/or code may enable, for example, parsing,transcoding and/or otherwise processing of data. The data may comprisemultimedia data comprising voice, video, text, still images, and/ormoving images. The processor 208 may be operable to communicate one ormore user profiles to the management entity 156 a and/or 156 b. Theprocessor 208 may be operable to receive the determined leasinginformation from the service provider 154 and/or the content provider154.

In various embodiments of the invention, the applications, programs,and/or code may be operable to, for example, configure and/or controloperation of the wireless Tx/Rx 202 and/or wired Tx/Rx 204 and/or theGNSS receiver 206, the memory 210, and/or the DSP 212.

In accordance with an embodiment of the invention, the endpoint device200 may be compliant with Energy Efficient Ethernet (EEE). Accordingly,the Ethernet network links may be operable to dynamically enter a lowerpower state when the Ethernet link is idle, and then be able totransition back to a higher power state running at full speed when thereis network activity.

The memory 210 may comprise suitable logic, circuitry, interfaces and/orcode that may enable storage or programming of information thatcomprises, for example, user profiles and/or code that may effectuatethe operation of the endpoint device 200. Additionally, the memory 210may buffer or otherwise store received data and/or data to betransmitted. The memory 210 may be operable to store the leasinginformation from the service provider 154 and/or the content provider154.

The DSP 212 may comprise suitable logic, circuitry, interfaces and/orcode that may be operable to perform computationally intensiveprocessing of data. The DSP 212 may be operable to handle exemplaryoperations comprising encoding, decoding, modulating, demodulating,encryption, decryption, scrambling, descrambling, and/or otherwiseprocessing of data.

In operation, the processor 208 may be operable to communicate one ormore user profiles corresponding to the endpoint device 200 to themanagement entity 102. The management entity 102 may be operable toutilize the one or more user profiles associated with the endpointdevice 200 and the usage pattern associated with the endpoint device 200to determine leasing information for the endpoint device 200.

The processor 208 may be operable to configure the endpoint device 200based on receiving from the management entity 102, the determinedleasing information for the endpoint device 200. The processor 208 maybe operable to communicate one or more updated user profiles and/orupdated usage patterns associated with the endpoint device 200 to themanagement entity 102. The processor 208 may be operable to configureand/or reconfigure the endpoint device 200 based on receiving existing,default, and/or new leasing information from the management entity 102.

FIG. 2B is a diagram illustrating an exemplary management entity, inaccordance with an embodiment of the invention. Referring to FIG. 2B,there is shown a management entity 250. The management entity 250 maycomprise a wireless Tx/Rx 252, a wired Tx/Rx 254, a processor 256, amemory 258, and a registry 260. The wireless Tx/Rx 252 and the wiredTx/Rx 254 may be substantially similar to the corresponding blocks asdescribed with respect to FIG. 2A. Notwithstanding, the invention maynot be so limited, and the management entity 250 may be realized inhardware, software, or a combination of hardware and software withoutlimiting the scope of the invention.

The processor 256 may comprise suitable logic, circuitry, interfacesand/or code that may be operable to receive one or more user profilesfrom the endpoint device 200. The processor 256 may be operable todynamically update a registry 260 based on the received one or more userprofiles from the endpoint device 200. The processor 256 may be operableto process data and/or control operations of the management entity 250.In this regard, the processor 256 may be operable to provide controlsignals to the various other blocks within the management entity 250.The processor 256 may also control data transfers between variousportions of the management entity 250. Additionally, the processor 256may enable execution of applications programs and/or code. In variousembodiments of the invention, the applications, programs, and/or codemay enable, for example, parsing, transcoding and/or otherwiseprocessing data. The processor 256 may be operable to determine leasinginformation based on the received one or more user profiles associatedwith the endpoint device 200 and the usage pattern associated with theendpoint device 200. The processor 256 may be operable to communicatethe leasing information to the endpoint device 200.

In various embodiments of the invention, the applications, programs,and/or code may be operable to, for example, configure and/or controloperation of the wireless Tx/Rx 252 and/or wired Tx/Rx 254, the memory258, and/or the registry 260.

The memory 260 may comprise suitable logic, circuitry, interfaces and/orcode that may be operable to store or program information that includes,for example, parameters and/or code that may effectuate the operation ofthe management entity 250. Exemplary parameters may compriseconfiguration data and exemplary code may comprise operational code suchas software and/or firmware, but the information need not be limited inthis regard. Additionally, the memory 260 may buffer or otherwise storereceived data and/or data to be transmitted.

The registry 260 may comprise suitable logic, circuitry, interfacesand/or code that may be operable to store one or more of a bandwidthusage, applications leased, services leased, a service class, devicecapabilities, a GNSS location, a power mode, a time period of leasingservices, and/or a time period of leasing applications of each of theendpoint devices 200.

In operation, the processor 256 may be operable to receive one or moreuser profiles associated with the endpoint device 200. The processor 256may be operable to utilize the one or more user profiles associated withthe endpoint device 200 and the usage pattern associated with theendpoint device 200 to determine leasing information for the endpointdevice 200.

The processor 256 may be operable to communicate the determined leasinginformation to the endpoint device 200. The processor 256 may beoperable to receive one or more updated user profiles and/or updatedusage patterns associated with the endpoint device 200 and update theregistry 260. The processor 256 may be operable to determine new leasinginformation for the endpoint device 200 based on the received updateduser profiles and/or updated usage patterns associated with the endpointdevice 200. The processor 256 may be operable to communicate thedetermined new leasing information to the endpoint device 200.

FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating exemplary user profiles stored in aregistry in a management entity, in accordance with an embodiment of theinvention. Referring to FIG. 3, the exemplary user profiles stored in aregistry 300 refers to a plurality of endpoint device entries 302 a, 302b, and 302 c, collectively referred to herein as entries 302. Althoughonly three entries 302 are depicted, the invention may not be so limitedand any number of entries may be displayed and/or viewable in theregistry 300. Each entry 302 may correspond to user profilescommunicated by a particular user and/or endpoint device 200. Each entry302 may comprise a name/description field 304, a service class 206, aGNSS coordinates field 308, a bandwidth usage field 310, an applicationsleased field 312, a time period at which applications were leased field314, a device capabilities field 316, a services leased field 318, atime period at which services were leased field 320, and a power modefield 322 corresponding to an endpoint device 200.

The name/description field 304 may provide information to uniquelydescribe an endpoint device 200. The service class field 306 maycomprise information regarding the designated service class for eachendpoint device 200. The GNSS coordinates field 308 may indicate thecurrent GNSS coordinates of an endpoint device 200. The bandwidth usagefield 310 may indicate the amount of bandwidth used by the endpointdevice 200. The applications leased field 312 may indicate the variousapplications leased by the endpoint device 200. The applications leasedfield 312 may also indicate the applications that were downloaded by theendpoint device 200. The time period at which applications were leasedfield 314 may indicate a time period at which one or more of theapplications were leased. The device capabilities field 316 may indicatethe device capabilities of the endpoint device, for example, theprocessor CPU speed, the amount of memory available, and one or morenetwork connections available at the endpoint device 200. The servicesleased field 318 may indicate the various services leased by theendpoint device 200. The time period at which services were leased field320 may indicate a time period at which one or more of the services wereleased. The power mode field 322 may indicate whether the endpointdevice 200 is in a low power mode, or low power idle or a full powermode, for example.

In operation, the plurality of exemplary user profiles and usagepatterns stored in the registry 300 may be dynamically updated based onreceiving one or more of the user profiles from the endpoint devices200. The plurality of exemplary user profiles may be communicated to theregistry 300 based on a SNMP or L3 protocols, for example. The processor256 may be operable to determine the leasing information based on thereceived user profiles and/or the usage patterns associated with thecorresponding endpoint device 200. The leasing information may beutilized by the endpoint device 200 to download one or more applicationsleased at a designated time and/or at a designated location based on theavailability of bandwidth, the service class, and the devicecapabilities of the endpoint device 200.

FIG. 4 is a flow chart illustrating exemplary steps for leasing ofnetwork services and applications based on a usage pattern, inaccordance with an embodiment of the invention. Referring to FIG. 4,exemplary steps may begin at step 402. In step 404, a management entity250 may receive one or more user profiles from the endpoint device 200.In step 406, a registry 300 may be dynamically updated based on thereceived one or more user profiles. In step 408, the management entity250 may be operable to predict or determine the leasing informationbased on the received one or more user profiles corresponding to theendpoint device 200 and the usage pattern corresponding to the endpointdevice 200. For example, in accordance with an embodiment of theinvention, a user may purchase an airline ticket to a destination for apre-defined time period. The management entity 250 may determine leasinginformation for the user at the selected destination to lease one ormore applications and/or services, such as car rentals or Broadbandservices, based on the user's profile and the user's usage pattern.Accordingly, the user may have an option to lease one or moreapplications and/or services for one or more endpoint devices, forexample, STBs 110, cell phones 112, and/or the laptops 114 at thedestination based on the received leasing information from themanagement entity 250. In step 410, the endpoint device 200 may beoperable to receive the leasing information from the management entity250. In step 412, the endpoint device 200 may be operable to configureitself based on the received leasing information from the managemententity 250. For example, the management entity 250 may be operable topredictively lease a time period for downloading one or more of theapplications and/or services accessed by the one or more endpointdevices, for example, the STB 110 a, the cell phone 112 a, and/or thelaptop 114 a. Control then returns to step 404.

FIG. 5 is a flow chart illustrating exemplary steps for leasing ofnetwork services and applications based on an updated usage patternand/or an updated usage profile, in accordance with an embodiment of theinvention. Referring to FIG. 5, exemplary steps may begin at step 502.In step 504, the management entity 250 may receive one or more userprofiles from the endpoint device 200. In step 506, the managemententity 250 may be operable to utilize the one or more user profiles andthe usage pattern associated with the endpoint device 200 to determineleasing information for the endpoint device 200 and communicate thedetermined leasing information to the endpoint device 200. In step 508,it may be determined whether there are any updates to one or more userprofiles and/or usage patterns communicated from the endpoint device200. In instances where there are no updates to the one or morecommunicated user profiles and/or usage patterns, control returns tostep 508. In instances where there are updates to the one or morecommunicated user profiles and/or usage patterns, control passes to step510. In step 510, the management entity 250 may be operable to receiveone or more updated user profiles and/or usage patterns from theendpoint device 200. In step 512, the management entity 250 may beoperable to determine new leasing information for the endpoint device200 based on receiving the updated user profiles and/or the updatedusage patterns corresponding to the endpoint device 200 and communicatethe new leasing information to the endpoint device 200. In step 514, theendpoint device 200 may be operable to receive the new leasinginformation and configure itself based on the received new leasinginformation. Control then returns to step 510.

In accordance with an embodiment of the invention, a method and systemfor leasing network services and applications based on a usage patternmay comprise a communication system 100 (FIG. 1A). The communicationsystem 100 may comprise a management entity 102 (FIG. 1A) that may beoperable to coordinate operation of one or more endpoint devices, forexample, the STB 110 a (FIG. 1A), the cell phone 112 a (FIG. 1A), and/orthe laptop 114 a (FIG. 1A). One or more processors, for example, theprocessor 256 (FIG. 2B) and/or circuits for use in the management entity102 may be operable to receive a user profile from the one or moreendpoint devices, for example, the STB 110 a, the cell phone 112 a,and/or the laptop 114 a. One or more processors, for example, theprocessor 256 and/or circuits for use in the management entity 102 maybe operable to utilize the received user profile associated with the oneor more endpoint devices, for example, the STB 110 a, the cell phone 112a, and/or the laptop 114 a and a usage pattern associated with the oneor more endpoint devices, for example, the STB 110 a, the cell phone 112a, and/or the laptop 114 a to determine leasing information for the oneor more endpoint devices, for example, the STB 110 a, the cell phone 112a, and/or the laptop 114 a. The leasing information may compriseinformation regarding leasing one or both of applications and/orservices to the one or more endpoint devices, for example, the STB 110a, the cell phone 112 a, and/or the laptop 114 a.

The usage pattern associated with the one or more endpoint devices maycomprise one or more of a bandwidth usage, a time period of leasingapplications, and/or a time period of leasing services of the one ormore endpoint devices, for example, the STB 110 a, the cell phone 112 a,and/or the laptop 114 a. The determined leasing information may comprisea time period for downloading one or more of the applications leased bythe one or more endpoint devices, for example, the STB 110 a, the cellphone 112 a, and/or the laptop 114 a. The determined leasing informationmay comprise a time period for leasing one or more of the servicesleased by the one or more endpoint devices, for example, the STB 110 a,the cell phone 112 a, and/or the laptop 114 a. The user profileassociated with the one or more endpoint devices, for example, the STB110 a, the cell phone 112 a, and/or the laptop 114 a may comprise one ormore of applications leased, services leased, a service class,capabilities, a GNSS location, and/or a power mode of the one or moreendpoint devices, for example, the STB 110 a, the cell phone 112 a,and/or the laptop 114 a.

One or more processors, for example, the processor 256 and/or circuitsfor use in the management entity 102 may be operable to communicate thedetermined leasing information to the one or more endpoint devices, forexample, the STB 110 a, the cell phone 112 a, and/or the laptop 114 a.One or more processors, for example, the processor 208 (FIG. 2A) and/orcircuits may be operable to configure the one or more endpoint devices,for example, the STB 110 a, the cell phone 112 a, and/or the laptop 114a by utilizing the received determined leasing information for the oneor more endpoint devices, for example, the STB 110 a, the cell phone 112a, and/or the laptop 114 a.

One or more processors, for example, the processor 256 and/or circuitsfor use in the management entity 102 may be operable to receive anupdated user profile and/or an updated usage pattern associated with theone or more endpoint devices, for example, the STB 110 a, the cell phone112 a, and/or the laptop 114 a. One or more processors, for example, theprocessor 256 and/or circuits for use in the management entity 102 maybe operable to utilize the updated user profile and/or the updated usagepattern associated with the one or more endpoint devices, for example,the STB 110 a, the cell phone 112 a, and/or the laptop 114 a and theusage pattern associated with the one or more endpoint devices, forexample, the STB 110 a, the cell phone 112 a, and/or the laptop 114 a todetermine new leasing information for the one or more endpoint devices,for example, the STB 110 a, the cell phone 112 a, and/or the laptop 114a.

One or more processors, for example, the processor 256 and/or circuitsfor use in the management entity 102 may be operable to communicate thedetermined new leasing information to the one or more endpoint devices,for example, the STB 110 a, the cell phone 112 a, and/or the laptop 114a. One or more processors, for example, the processor 208 and/orcircuits may be operable to configure the one or more endpoint devices,for example, the STB 110 a, the cell phone 112 a, and/or the laptop 114a by utilizing the received and determined new leasing information forthe one or more endpoint devices, for example, the STB 110 a, the cellphone 112 a, and/or the laptop 114 a.

One or more processors, for example, the processor 256 and/or circuitsfor use in the management entity 102 may be operable to update theregistry 300 (FIG. 3) based on the received user profile associated withthe one or more endpoint devices, for example, the STB 110 a, the cellphone 112 a, and/or the laptop 114 a. The registry 300 may comprise oneor more of an identification number and a user profile for each of theone or more endpoint devices, for example, the STB 110 a, the cell phone112 a, and/or the laptop 114 a. One or more processors, for example, theprocessor 256 and/or circuits for use in the management entity 102 maybe operable to receive the user profile and communicate the determinedleasing information via one or both of a wireless 158 b and/or a wiredconnection 158 a. The management entity 106 may be one or both of acontent provider 152 and/or a service provider 154.

Other embodiments of the invention may provide a non-transitory computerreadable medium and/or storage medium, and/or a non-transitory machinereadable medium and/or storage medium, having stored thereon, a machinecode and/or a computer program having at least one code sectionexecutable by a machine and/or a computer, thereby causing the machineand/or computer to perform the steps as described herein for predictiveleasing of network services and applications based on a usage pattern.

Accordingly, the present invention may be realized in hardware,software, or a combination of hardware and software. The presentinvention may be realized in a centralized fashion in at least onecomputer system, or in a distributed fashion where different elementsare spread across several interconnected computer systems. Any kind ofcomputer system or other apparatus adapted for carrying out the methodsdescribed herein is suited. A typical combination of hardware andsoftware may be a general-purpose computer system with a computerprogram that, when being loaded and executed, controls the computersystem such that it carries out the methods described herein.

The present invention may also be embedded in a computer programproduct, which comprises all the features enabling the implementation ofthe methods described herein, and which when loaded in a computer systemis able to carry out these methods. Computer program in the presentcontext means any expression, in any language, code or notation, of aset of instructions intended to cause a system having an informationprocessing capability to perform a particular function either directlyor after either or both of the following: a) conversion to anotherlanguage, code or notation; b) reproduction in a different materialform.

While the present invention has been described with reference to certainembodiments, it will be understood by those skilled in the art thatvarious changes may be made and equivalents may be substituted withoutdeparting from the scope of the present invention. In addition, manymodifications may be made to adapt a particular situation or material tothe teachings of the present invention without departing from its scope.Therefore, it is intended that the present invention not be limited tothe particular embodiment disclosed, but that the present invention willinclude all embodiments falling within the scope of the appended claims.

The methods, devices, and logic described above may be implemented inmany different ways in many different combinations of hardware, softwareor both hardware and software. For example, all or parts of the systemmay include circuitry in a controller, a microprocessor, or anapplication specific integrated circuit (ASIC), or may be implementedwith discrete logic or components, or a combination of other types ofanalog or digital circuitry, combined on a single integrated circuit ordistributed among multiple integrated circuits. All or part of the logicdescribed above may be implemented as instructions for execution by aprocessor, controller, or other processing device and may be stored in atangible or non-transitory machine-readable or computer-readable mediumsuch as flash memory, random access memory (RAM) or read only memory(ROM), erasable programmable read only memory (EPROM) or othermachine-readable medium such as a compact disc read only memory (CDROM),or magnetic or optical disk. Thus, a product, such as a computer programproduct, may include a storage medium and computer readable instructionsstored on the medium, which when executed in an endpoint, computersystem, or other device, cause the device to perform operationsaccording to any of the description above.

The processing capability of the system may be distributed amongmultiple system components, such as among multiple processors andmemories, optionally including multiple distributed processing systems.Parameters, databases, and other data structures may be separatelystored and managed, may be incorporated into a single memory ordatabase, may be logically and physically organized in many differentways, and may implemented in many ways, including data structures suchas linked lists, hash tables, or implicit storage mechanisms. Programsmay be parts (e.g., subroutines) of a single program, separate programs,distributed across several memories and processors, or implemented inmany different ways, such as in a library, such as a shared library(e.g., a dynamic link library (DLL)). The DLL, for example, may storecode that performs any of the system processing described above. Whilevarious embodiments of the invention have been described, it will beapparent to those of ordinary skill in the art that many moreembodiments and implementations are possible within the scope of theinvention. Accordingly, the invention is not to be restricted except inlight of the attached claims and their equivalents.

1. A method comprising: at a network management entity, storing userprofile information about endpoint devices in a network; storing usagepattern information about respective ones of the endpoint devices in thenetwork; using the stored user profile information and the stored usagepattern information, determining a leasing arrangement for networkservices or network applications for lease by an endpoint device; andcommunicating the leasing arrangement to the endpoint device.
 2. Themethod of claim 1 further comprising: at the network management entity,receiving from respective endpoint devices respective device userprofile information; and storing in memory the received device userprofile information.
 3. The method of claim 1 further comprising: at thenetwork management entity, receiving from respective endpoint devicesrespective user profile information for users of the respective endpointdevices; and storing in memory the received user profile information. 4.The method of claim 1 wherein storing user profile informationcomprises: storing in a registry data about applications leased by theendpoint devices; and storing in the registry data about services leasedby the endpoint devices.
 5. The method of claim 4 wherein storing userprofile information comprises: storing in the registry informationdefining an application leased by a selected endpoint device; storing inthe registry information defining a service leased by the selectedendpoint device; and storing in the registry information defining devicecapabilities of the selected endpoint device.
 6. The method of claim 5wherein storing usage pattern information comprises. storing in theregistry information defining time periods at which an application hasbeen leased by the selected endpoint device; and storing in the registryinformation defining time periods at which a service has been leased bythe selected endpoint device.
 7. The method of claim 1 whereindetermining a leasing arrangement comprises: identifying one or morenetwork services to be leased by the endpoint device or a user of theendpoint device; and identifying one or more network applications to beleased by the endpoint device or a user of the endpoint device.
 8. Themethod of claim 7 wherein determining a leasing arrangement furthercomprises: determining a time period for using the one or more networkservices by the endpoint device or the user of the endpoint device. 9.The method of claim 7 wherein determining a leasing arrangement furthercomprises: determining a time period for downloading the one or morenetwork applications by the endpoint device or the user of the endpointdevice.
 10. The method of claim 1 wherein storing usage patterninformation comprises storing information about one or more of bandwidthusage, time periods of leasing applications or time periods of leasingnetwork services by the endpoint devices.
 11. The method of claim 1further comprising: at the network management entity, receiving updatedusage pattern information about respective ones of the endpoint devicesin the network; storing the updated usage pattern information; andsubsequently, using the updated usage pattern information fordetermining a subsequent leasing arrangement for network services ornetwork applications for lease by the endpoint device.
 12. A networkmanagement entity comprising: communication circuitry for communicationwith remote endpoint devices; data storage in data communication withthe communication circuitry, the data storage configured to store datadefining user profiles for the endpoint devices and data defining usagepattern information for the endpoint devices; and a processor in datacommunication with the communication circuitry and the data store, theprocessor operative to use the stored data defining user profiles andthe stored data defining usage patterns to determine a leasingarrangement for network services or network applications for lease by anendpoint device.
 13. The network management entity of claim 12 whereinthe communication circuitry is operative to receive respective userprofile data from respective endpoint devices for storage in the datastorage.
 14. The network management entity of claim 13 wherein thecommunication circuitry is operative to receive respective as userprofile data one or more of applications leased, services leased, aservice class, capabilities, and a location of a respective endpointdevice.
 15. The network management entity of claim 13 wherein thecommunication circuitry is further operative to receive updated usagepattern information from the respective endpoint devices for storage inthe data storage.
 16. The network management entity of claim 12 whereinthe communication circuitry is further operative to communicate datadefining the leasing arrangement to the endpoint device.
 17. Networkmanagement entity of claim 12 wherein the processor is operative todetermine a time period for downloading one or more network applicationsas the leasing arrangement.
 18. Network management entity of claim 12wherein the processor is operative to determine a time period forleasing one or more of the services as the leasing arrangement.
 19. Amethod comprising: at a network management entity in data communicationwith a plurality of endpoint devices, receiving over a network userprofile data for endpoint devices in the network, the user profile datadefining information about a respective endpoint device, a user of therespective endpoint device, or both; receiving, over the network, usagepattern data for endpoint devices in the network; using the receiveduser profile data and the received usage pattern data, creatingrespective leasing arrangements for respective endpoint devices, therespective leasing arrangement defining network services or networkapplications for lease by the respective endpoint devices; receivingupdated usage pattern data from one of the respective endpoint devices;and using the updated usage pattern data, updating the leasingarrangement for the one of the respective endpoint devices.
 20. Themethod of claim 19 further comprising: communicating the leasingarrangement and the updated leasing arrangement to the one of therespective endpoint devices.